National Accreditation

In 1992 the Virginia Tech Police voluntarily elected to enter the accreditation process. This process requires an extensive commitment by all department personnel to the pursuit of excellence as recognized by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies Incorporated (CALEA). CALEA is an independent, nonprofit organization established in 1979 to develop a set of law enforcement standards that would improve the delivery of law enforcement services from coast to coast. Four major law enforcement associations - the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), the National Sheriff's Association (NSA), the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE), and the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) - combined efforts to develop and review these standards. The 459 standards are designed to:

The CALEA seal

• Increase the law enforcement agency's ability to prevent and control crime
• Increase agency effectiveness and efficiency in delivering law enforcement services
• Increase cooperation and coordination with other law enforcement agencies and with other agencies of the criminal justice system
• Increase citizen and employee confidence in the goals, objectives, policies, and practices of the agency

The accreditation process requires the police department to comply with applicable standards and to document this compliance for a final on-site review by a CALEA assessment team. The assessmen team report is then reviewed at one of several regional CALEA meetings. Accreditation standards are strict. Virginia Tech Police is one of only a few University Police Departments nationally accredited. On November 18, 2012, the Virginia Tech Police Department was awarded its fifth reaccredidation. To learn more, visit www.CALEA.org.